State says it has all drugs needed for executionsLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas said Tuesday that it has a new supply of a drug used for lethal injections that had expired last month, potentially clearing the way for the state to resume executions after a decade-long hiatus. The state Department of Correction announced it had received a supply of vecuronium bromide with an expiration date of March 1, 2018. The state's previous supply of the paralytic expired on June 30. Department spokesm...

Lt. Gov. Griffin says he's seeking re-electionLITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin said Monday he's seeking re-election in two years, becoming the second statewide official to launch a campaign for the 2018 election. The Republican ex-congressman, who was first elected in 2014, said he was announcing early partly because he's regularly asked about his future plans but also to give himself more time to organize his re-election campaign. "The later you start, the more you have to do ...

Panel OKs religious opt-out for Arkansas counselorsLITTLE ROCK — Arkansas lawmakers gave final approval Tuesday to a rule allowing counselors to refer clients to another provider if they have a religious objection to treating them, a move critics say opens the door for discrimination against gays and lesbians. The rule will allow counselors and therapists to refer a patient to someone else over sincerely held "ethical, moral or religious principles" but only after careful consideration and con...

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BY ANDREW DEMILLO ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

AR lottery sales break record• Reports says Arkansas lottery enjoys record-breaking sales LITTLE ROCK — A new report says the Arkansas lottery enjoyed record-breaking sales over the past year that funded an increase in college scholarships in the state. The report released Monday to the Legislature's Lottery Oversight Committee says total ticket sales during the fiscal year that ended June 30 were $455.6 million, up 11.5 percent over fiscal 2015. Instant ticket sales were...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Analysis: Arkansas surplus opens budget fight in LegislatureLITTLE ROCK — Arkansas' announcement last week that it has a $177.4 million surplus should be good news at first blush, especially for a state whose neighbors are grappling with serious budget holes. But instead the figures for the end of the state's fiscal year are likely to open up a new fight in the Legislature over the push for tax cuts and concerns that services are being jeopardized. Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson portrayed the boost in ...

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BY ANDREW DEMILLO ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

USDA awards $14.6 million for Arkansas wetlands restorationLITTLE ROCK — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded $14.6 million for a wetlands restoration project in eastern Arkansas. The funding announced Thursday is part of the USDA's Wetland Reserve Enhancement Partnership that awarded a total of $44.6 million to 10 projects in 12 states. The Arkansas project intends to improve water quality and restore forested wetlands in the Cache River watershed. The Nature Conservancy is the lead partner...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

3 groups submit petitions for Arkansas ballot measuresLITTLE ROCK — Groups trying to get casino legalization, medical marijuana and limits on medical lawsuits before Arkansas voters submitted thousands of signatures to election officials on Friday in hopes of qualifying for the November ballot. The groups submitted their petitions for the three proposed constitutional amendments throughout the day Friday, the deadline to turn in signatures for the November ballot. Proposed amendments need at leas...

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BY ANDREW DEMILLO ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Growing economic successLITTLE ROCK -- Earlier this week our state received some great financial news. The Arkansas Department of Finance submitted the year end revenue summary for 2016. I am pleased to report that Arkansas finished the year with a $177 million budget surplus. This is an excellent reflection of our growing economic success. Our budget surplus is a direct result of conservative principles in action. One of the first steps I took upon being elected Gov...

State Briefs (July 8, 2016)• Collisions create big headaches for Arkansas' Tiny Town HOT SPRINGS — The Tiny Town tourist attraction in Hot Springs has a big traffic problem. It's been hit by 11 cars in the last 53 years. The Sentinel-Record reports a vehicle jumped the curb up the street from the property Monday, ran through the neighboring lawn and collided into the rear section of the building, damaging the attraction's souvenir shop. Tiny Town is a house-like structu...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Red Ryder BB gun company to merge with Florida companyROGERS — An Arkansas-based air rifle company that created the Red Ryder BB gun for the 1983 movie "A Christmas Story" has new ownership and is merging with a Florida-based air rifle manufacturer. Daisy Outdoor Products in Rogers, Arkansas, is merging with Gamo Outdoor USA, The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/29AU0JB ) reports. Daisy spokesman Joe Murfin says the company history and brand reputation caught the interest of Bruckmann, Ro...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Medical marijuana measure approved for Arkansas ballotLITTLE ROCK — A proposal to legalize medical marijuana in Arkansas qualified for the November ballot on Thursday, putting the issue before the state's voters for the second time in four years. The secretary of state's office said it had verified at least 77,516 of the more than 117,000 signatures submitted for the proposed initiated act by Arkansans for Compassionate Care were from registered voters. Initiated acts need at least 67,887 signatu...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Arkansas inmates want new look at execution drug rulingLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Attorneys for eight death row inmates asked Arkansas' highest court Thursday to reconsider its decision upholding a state law that keeps information about lethal injection drugs confidential. The petition for rehearing filed with the state Supreme Court argues that justices overlooked several of the inmates' arguments when they reversed a lower court's decision against the law, which requires the Department of Correcti...

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BY ANDREW DEMILLO ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

State Briefs (July 7, 2016)• Escaped inmate turns himself in at Arkansas bar, has a beer PARIS, Ark. — An inmate who escaped a northwestern Arkansas jail, showed up at a nearby bar a week later, ordered a beer and declared he was turning himself in. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that 45-year-old Shaun Higham turned up Tuesday night at Mitch's Place in Paris, about 6 miles from the Logan County Jail. He was wearing a dirty prison uniform and covered in insect bit...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

New website details missing person cases in ArkansasLITTLE ROCK — A new Arkansas website will allow the public to search information on more than 500 missing person cases in the state. Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, Arkansas Crime Information Center Director Jay Winters and other officials on Wednesday unveiled the new site, www.neverforgotten.ar.gov . Winters said it cost ACIC about $28,000 to set up the site. Rutledge said before the website was launched, the public had limited access to i...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Arkansas police to return medals in 107-year-old's shootingPINE BLUFF — Pine Bluff police officers who received medals of valor for their involvement in the fatal shooting of a 107-year-old man during a 2013 standoff have been told to return their medals to the city. The Pine Bluff City Council voted unanimously Monday to rescind all lifesaving medals or awards given in association to Monroe Isadore's shooting, The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports. Alderman Thelma Walker put the item on Monday's agen...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Work on Arkansas highways progressingFAYETTEVILLE — The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department has completed 203 projects on northwest Arkansas highways since 2005, and officials promise that more are on the way. The lion's share of the work happened in Benton and Washington counties, The Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that. District engineer Chad Adams says 25 projects are currently underway and 68 more projects covering more than 140 miles are scheduled bet...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Arkansas ends fiscal year with $177.4M surplusLITTLE ROCK — Arkansas ended its fiscal year with a $177.4 million surplus, state finance officials announced Tuesday, as Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson used the boost in revenue to argue for further cuts in the state's income tax rate. The state Department of Finance and Administration said Arkansas' net available revenue for the fiscal year that ended June 30 totaled $5.3 billion, which was $117.3 million more than the previous fiscal year. ...

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BY ANDREW DEMILLO ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

State Briefs (June 30, 2016)• Simmons Feed Mill worker killed at plant in Oklahoma FAIRLAND, Okla. — An employee of Simmons Feed Mill in northeastern Oklahoma has been killed in an accident the plant. Simmons Prepared Foods Chief Operating Officer Gary Murphy said in a statement to reporters Wednesday that the company is devastated and working to support the employee's family. Murphy says operations at the plant are suspended while the incident is investigated. The emplo...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Searcy couple charged in death of 4-month-old west Texas boySEARCY — Police say a 4-month-old boy from west Texas has died while in the care of his great-aunt and her husband in Searcy. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that 55-year-old Jeff High and 57-year-old Dianna O'Bryan have been arrested on charges of first-degree endangering the welfare of a minor with conduct creating the risk of death or serious injury. Authorities found the infant dead inside an apartment unit around 11 a.m. Saturday du...

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley